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Just a quick note on feral cell size: A few weeks ago I took two colonies out of a shed wall for a friend. They had been there for years, and he liked having them, but wanted to remodel the shed and didn't want to kill the bees. I finally got around to measuring several sections of comb that I saved (forgot to save drone comb) and the sizes ran from 4.9 up to 5.15. I plan to use these colonies to produce queens from as they are survivors and are already regressed. I am also thinking that I could cycle small cell foundation through these hives to generate extra small cell comb.

Very good idea, I wish I could get so lucky, but here in southern Oregon where people destroyed 1800 hives back at the first varroa scare, there is scarce a bee to be found when the migratory beekeeps move out for pollination. I shall just have to regress packages.

No I didn't. I would like to say that I was paying close attention but I wasn't (I'll never make it as a scientist!) The comb was twisted and contorted as it usually is in feral hives, and there wasn't an apparent method to their madness. I am sure had I thought to look a little more carefully I may have had more to report..